# Qayyum Changezi

Abdul Qayyum Ali Khan Changezi (Urdu: عبدالقیوم علی خان چنگیزی; 25 December 1935 – 25 June 2005), commonly known as Qayyum Changezi, was a Pakistani footballer. A versatile player, Changezi played in multiple positions, including forward in the centre or as an inside left, and as full back. A former captain and key player of the national team in the nation's early years, Changezi is widely considered as one of the greatest Pakistani footballers of all time.

## Early life

Belonging to the ethnic Hazara community, Changezi was born in Quetta in the Baluchistan Agency of British India on 25 December 1935. His father Haji Nasir Ali Khan was member of the All-India Muslim League and served as soldier in the 106th Hazara Pioneers infantry of the British Indian Army and later for Pakistan during the Indo-Pakistani war of 1947–1948.

## Club career

He developed an interest in football while attending high school, playing for Hazara Club Quetta in his youth until making his senior debut in 1950 with Afghan Club Quetta. In the 1950s, he toured in club tournaments in Iran and India with Karachi Kickers and Karachi Mohammedan, and in 1956 again with Karachi Kickers and Hazara Club. In 1955, after winning the Seth Nagji Amarsee Memorial Football Tournament in Kozhikode by defeating Kannur Gymkhana, Changezi was praised and reportedly carried out of the Mananchira ground in Kozhikode by local fans on his shoulders after the final.
Changezi started playing in the National Football Championship from 1953 and was a member of the Balochistan team that won the title in 1956 by defeating Pakistan Railways in Karachi on 11 November 1956, where he scored one goal in the final 2–1 victory, and was declared player of the year.
Later on in 1959 under his captainship, Balochistan defeated East Pakistan in Hyderabad on 7 November 1959, achieving their second league title. In the same tournament, he scored 6 goals in the 9–0 victory against Sindh Green.
When the National Football Championship structure in Pakistan transitioned from provincial to divisional based clubs, he subsequently represented Quetta, Railways and Faisalabad. Under his captainship, Railways ended up in the second position in 15th and 16th National Championship in 1963 and 1965, after falling twice to Karachi, in the finals held in the cities of Karachi and Peshawar respectively. In 1963, Changezi represented Dhaka Mohammedan winning the Dhaka First Division League and finishing top scorer of the tournament with 24 goals. A few months later during a 1963 global tour, Germany's Bundesliga club Fortuna Düsseldorf faced aircraft issues, leading to an unexpected stay in Pakistan. The Pakistan Football Federation invited the club to play friendly matches against select XI teams from East and West Pakistan. Fortuna enthusiastically accepted, competing against teams like East Pakistan Sports Board XI in Dacca, which included Changezi as captain, where he scored East Pakistan's consolation goal from a long-distance free-kick in a 1–4 defeat. The german side reportedly offered a playing contract to Changezi in his last playing years, which the latter ultiumately declined.

## International career

Changezi made his international debut with the Pakistan national team during the 1955 Asian Quadrangular Football Tournament. In his debut match, Changezi scored a hat-trick including two penalty goals against Burma, becoming the second Pakistani player to do so after Masood Fakhri.
In 1958, Changezi was omitted from the squad for the 1958 Asian Games due to misbehaviour. The next year he was included in the squad for a tour to Burma. In late 1959, Changezi captained the team in the 1960 Asian Cup qualifiers hosted in Kerala, India, where Pakistan faced Iran, India and Israel twice each in the qualifiers. Although Israel managed to qualify by topping the group, Pakistan achieved a memorable victory over Iran by 4–1 and secure a draw against Israel, finishing in third place in the group, ahead of hosts India but behind Iran. Changezi along with fellow national teammate Abdul Ghafoor were also the only Pakistani players selected to be part of the Asian All-Stars team after the tournament.
Changezi also captained during the 1960 Merdeka Tournament hosted in Malaya. Under his captaincy, Pakistan recorded some famous victories including a 7–0 walloping of Thailand, and a 3–1 win over then Asian powerhouses Japan. Although Changezi was not included in the squad for the 1962 edition of the Merdeka Cup, in 1963 Changezi played a series of home friendly games against China under the captainship of Muhammad Umer, marking his final appearances for Pakistan.

## Managerial career

In 1977, Qayyum was appointed as manager of the Shaheen FC club which toured in the Afghanistan Republic Day Festival Cup in Kabul.

## Personal life

His younger cousin Younus Changezi also played for the Pakistan national team from the 1960s till early 1970s, and was later appointed as manager of the national team in the 1980s. In 2003, Qayyum Changezi replaced M.N. Jehan as chairman of the selection committee of the Pakistan Football Federation by Arshad Khan Lodhi, following the newly elected president Faisal Saleh Hayat.
Changezi died on 25 June 2005 in Lahore, due to a heart attack. His dead body was transported to his native city Quetta for burial.

## Legacy

In 2014, the Qayyum Papa Stadium in Mari Abad in Quetta was inaugurated after his name.

## Career statistics
### International goals

    Scores and results list Pakistan's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Changezi goal.
List of international goals scored by Qayyum Changezi :
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
| 1 | 17 December 1955 | Dacca Stadium, Dhaka, East Pakistan | Burma | | 4–2 | 1955 Asian Quadrangular Football Tournament |
| 2 | 17 December 1955 | Dacca Stadium, Dhaka, East Pakistan | Burma | | 4–2 | 1955 Asian Quadrangular Football Tournament |
| 3 | 17 December 1955 | Dacca Stadium, Dhaka, East Pakistan | Burma | | 4–2 | 1955 Asian Quadrangular Football Tournament |
| 4 | 9 September 1956 | Jalan Besar Stadium, Kallang, Singapore | Singapore | 1–1 | 1–1 | Friendly |
| 5 | 15 December 1959 | Maharaja's College Stadium, Kochi, India | Iran | | 1–4 | 1960 AFC Asian Cup qualification |
| 6 | 5 August 1960 | Stadium Merdeka, Kuala Lumpur, Malaya | Thailand | 3–0 | 7–0 | 1960 Merdeka Tournament |
| 7 | 18 August 1960 | Singapore | South Vietnam | 1–0 | 2–2 | Friendly |

## Honours

Balochistan
* National Football Championship: 1956, 1959
Pakistan Railways
* National Football Championship runner-up: 1963, 1965
Dhaka Mohammedan
* Dhaka First Division League: 1963
Individual
* 1963 − Dhaka First Division League top scorer (24 goals)